Heading attachment for kafir-corn harvesters.



J. STEWART.

HEADING ATTACHMENT FOR KAFIR CORN HARVBSTBRS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 15, 19 13.

Patented Mar. 31, 1914.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

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Witnesses Attorneys J. STEWART.

READING ATTACHMENT FOR KAFIR CORN HARVESTBRS.

APPLICATION FILED FBB.15, 191s.

1,091,779. Patented Mar. 31; 1911 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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Inventor by I Witnesses M T Attorneys coLunalA PLANOOIAPH CD..WA8iIm D. c.

S ATES PATI JASPER STEWART, 0F ARKANSAS CITY, KANSAS.

Application filed February 15, 1913.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JASPER STEWART, a citizen of the United States, residing at Arkansas City, in the county of Cowley and State of Kansas, have invented a new and useful Heading Attachment for Kafir- Corn Harvesters, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a header attachment for Kafir corn harvesters.

In certain types of harvesters, such for example as the well known McCormick harvester, the bundles of corn are supported on end while being bound. The bundle is then deposited on the bundle carrier of the machine. In binders of this type, however, the heads are left on the corn and it is necessary to handle the bundles several times in order to remove the heads.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide an attachment which can be applied readily to an ordinary form of harvester and which will operate automatically to cut off the heads from the bundle so that the bundle, with the heads removed therefrom, will be deposited on the bundle carrier as ordinarily while the heads will be directed onto an elevator provided for con veying them to a suitable receptacle.

Another object is to provide an attachment of this character which is simple in construction and can be readily applied.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, can be made within the scope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings the preferred form of the invention has been shown.

In said drawings: Figure 1 is a plan view of a portion of a harvester having the present improvements combined therewith. Fig. 2 is a view partly in elevation and partly in section of parts of the structure shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of the attachment and adjacent parts. Fig. 1 is a detail view of the fixed knife of the heading mechanism. Fig. 5 is perspective view of the movable knife. Fig. 6 is an enlarged section through the table and its apron.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 31, 1914:.

Serial No. 748,669.

Referring to the figures by characters of reference A designates a portion of an ordinary harvester, the bundle discharge shaft being lndicated at B and being adapted to be actuated intermittently in the usual manner. As the mechanism provided for this purpose does not constitute any part of the present invention, it has not been deemed necessary to illustrate or describe it.

Secured to the shaft B is a collar 1 constituting a support for an apertured tongue 2 extending from one end of a bowed knife 3 which extends across the path of the upper end portion of the bundles, the other end of the knife being provided with spaced boltlike extensions 4 which extend into and are secured to the bundle supporting bar 0 at the remote side of the machine. Supported in substantially the same plane with the bowed knife 3 is a small table 5 which over-- hangs and discharges onto an inclined apron 6. A retaining plate or shield 7 extends upwardly from that side of the table 5 remote from the blade 3. This retaining plate also extends along the corresponding side of the apron 6, there being a retaining flange 8 at that side of apron 6 opposite the plate 7. One of the discharge fingers D revoluble with shaft B is adapted to travel below table 5 and above the apron 6 and it is for this reason that the said table is spaced above the apron. A slide 9 is mounted on the delivery shaft B and has a longitudinal slot 10 for the reception of a set screw 11 which engages the shaft and serves to hold the slide against both sliding and rotary movement upon the shaft. Extending from one end of the slide is an ear 12 having an opening 13 through which the shaft extends. A blade 14 extends from the other end of the slide and projects radially from shaft B. This blade is adapted to travel over but close to the table 5 and to cooperate with the bowed blade 3 for the purpose of cutting off the heads of the corn. Under normal condi tions the blade 14: is extended out of the path of'the bundles. When a bundle has been completed and is to be delivered as ordinarily, the shaft B is set in motion and as the blade 1 1 is located in advance of the delivery fingers D, this blade will move against the top of the bundle of corn and force the bundle against the stationary blade 3 whereupon the heads will be severed and thrown onto the table 5 immediately prior to the delivery of the bundle by the fingers D. The bundle, with the heads severed therefrom, is delivered as ordinarily, the same being moved outwardly under the table 5 and onto the bundle carrier commonly used. The heads which have been severed are swept by blade 14. along table 5 and deposited on the apron 6' from which they gravitate to an elevator" 15. This elevator may be supported adjustably and is of suflicien't length toconvey the severed heads upwardly to a point where they can be discharged into a wagon or other receptacle provided therefor.

Any suitable mechanism may be provided whereby the endless apron 16 which is included in the elevator structure, can be operated continuously from the harvester mechanism. For example, and as shownin the drawings, a pulley 17 can be connected to one of the rollers of the elevator, this pulley being driven by a belt 18 receiving motion from another pulley 19 carried by the harvester.

In order that the topsmay be properly guided into the chute 6-, curved guide arms E may be employed as shown in Figs. 1 and 3',

It is to be understood that the structure can be modified to any desired extent so as to adapt it for use in connection with harvesters of different types.

What is claimed is The combination with the intern'iittentl y' rotating vertical bundle delivering shaft of a harvester, of a fixed knife mounted at one endon said shaft and extending across the pathof movement of the bundles propelled by the shaft, a table back of the knife, a knife connected t0= and revoluble with the intermittently operating delivery shaft and cooperating with the fixed knife to remove heads from bundles immediately prior to the ejection of said bundles by the shaft.

2. The combination with the intermittently rotating bundle delivering shaft of a harvester, and bundle ejecting fingers extending, therefrom, of a fixed blade extending across the path of the bundles, a movable blade revoluble with the delivery shaft inadvance of the delivery fingers and cooperating with the fixed blade for severing the tops of the bundles immediately prior to the ejection of the bundles by the fingers.

3. The combination with the intermittently rotating bundle delivery shaft of a harvester, and bundle ejecting fingers extendingtherefrom, of a: fixed blade extending across the path of the bundles, a movable blade revoluble with the delivery shaft in advance of the delivery fingers and" cooperating with the fixed blade for severing the tops of the bundles immediately prior to the ejection of the bundles by the fingers, a table for receiving the severed tops, an elevator, andmeans for directing the sev ered tops from the-table to the elevator.

4. The combination with the intermittently rotating bundle delivery shaft of a harvester, and bundle ejecting fingers extending therefrom, of a bowed fixed blade mounted at one end on the shaft and connected at its other end to the harvester structure, a, movable blade revoluble with the delivery shaft inadvance of the fingers, said blade cotiperating with the fixed blade for removing the tops of the bundles; immediately prior to the engagement of the fingers with the bundles, a table for receiving the severecl tops, an apron. for receiving the tops from the table, and an elevator for'receiving the tops from the apron.

5. The combination witlithe intermittentlyr'otating, vertical, bundle. delivery shaft of a harvester, and bundle ejecting fingers extending therefrom, of a bowed fixed blade mounted atone end: on the shaft and connected at its other end to the harvester structure, a movable blade revoluble with the delivery shaft in advance of the fingers, said blade cooperating with the fixed blade for removing the tops of the: bundles immediately prior to the engagement of the fingers with the bundles, means for connecting the movable blade to the shaft for vertical adjustment, a: table back of the fixed blade for receiving the severedtops, an apron, said movable blade constituting means for directing the severed tops along the table and onto the apron, and an elevator for receiving the tops from the apron.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixed my signa- Euro in the presence of two witnesses.

JASPER STEW ART. lVitnessesz:

M. BEA'rY, Rosn UPsoN.

Gap!" 0'! this patent may lie obtained for live cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D} C. 

